Planning a strata repaint: a guide for councils of owners
29 July 2026 · 4 min read
Scope, staging, access, resident communication and the questions to put to a contractor before the levy is struck.
A strata repaint is a large, visible spend of other people's money, and the council of owners carries the decision. The painting is usually the straightforward part. The programme, the communication and the scope are where these projects succeed or fail.
Start with the scope, not the price
Common property boundaries vary between schemes, and the first question is always: what does the strata company actually own and maintain?
Typically common property includes external walls, common-area corridors and stairwells, balcony soffits and ceilings, common balustrade, entry lobbies, plant rooms and the carpark. Typically it excludes the inside of lots, and often the inside face of a balcony wall — but this depends on the scheme and the by-laws.
Get this settled with the strata manager before quoting. A repaint that assumes balcony interiors are included, priced and then removed at the last minute, costs everyone time.
What should be in the specification
- Every surface, named, with its substrate
- Preparation standard for each surface type
- Concrete repair allowance — spalling and exposed reinforcement in older buildings
- Rust treatment allowance on balustrade and steel
- Sealant replacement at movement joints and around windows
- Products by brand and line
- Access method for each elevation
- Staging and programme
- Making good and cleaning
The allowance items are the ones that blow the budget
Concrete cancer, rusting balustrade fixings and perished sealant are not visible from the ground and are discovered on access. A specification with realistic provisional sums for these produces far fewer nasty surprises than one that pretends they will not exist.
Access is a major cost, and a real decision
| Method | Suits | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Scaffold | Low to mid-rise, heavy repair work | Highest cost, best for extensive concrete work |
| Elevated work platform | Open sites with vehicle access | Fast, limited by ground conditions |
| Rope access | High-rise, limited ground access | Efficient, restricts what repairs are practical |
| Swing stage | High-rise, extensive work | Needs building anchor points certified |
Access can be a substantial share of the total. It is also the item most affected by staging — doing the building in four stages with one set of scaffold moved four times costs more than doing it once.
Staging and residents
This is where strata projects generate complaints, and nearly all of it is preventable with communication.
**Give notice in writing, well ahead.** Which elevation, which dates, what residents need to do.
**Be specific about balconies.** Residents need to clear them, and they need a date, not "sometime next month".
**Address privacy.** Workers at window height is the most common complaint in a residential building. Set out working hours, require workers to announce themselves on balconies, and offer to schedule sensitive elevations.
**Protect parking and access.** Nominate alternative parking before the first day, not on it.
**Nominate a single contact.** One person residents can raise issues with, and one person the contractor reports to.
Compliance to require before anyone starts
- Public liability insurance, with a certificate of currency
- Workers' compensation cover
- Safe Work Method Statements for the high-risk work — working at heights, access equipment
- Licences for any high-risk work licence classes involved
- Traffic management plan if footpaths or roads are affected
- Confirmation of how asbestos will be handled if the building predates 1990
Getting comparable quotes
Issue the same written specification to every tenderer. Strata repaint quotes are notoriously hard to compare because each contractor scopes it differently — issuing your own scope removes that problem entirely and is worth the effort of preparing.
Ask each for two references from strata projects of similar size, and actually call them. Ask the referee about the programme, the communication and the variations, not about the paint.
Timing
Book well ahead. Good contractors on multi-unit work are scheduled months out, and the work wants the shoulder seasons — spring and autumn — for reliable weather. Deciding in November to paint before Christmas is how councils end up with the contractor who was available.